The Layover
by nibbler747
Summary: Temari needs to get back to Tokyo from her work trip to London but is delayed. Her layover in not what she was expecting when she meets an interesting travel partner. SecretSanta fic for the ShikaTemaShrine Discord.


Temari stared at the flight status board while tapping her foot. Why hadn't they updated anything for thirty minutes? Surely they must now something by now. She glanced at her watch for the millionth time and mentally calculated the time. The gate was overflowing with people who were progressively getting more and more frustrated. Everyone was in a complete state of panic. Well mostly everybody. She stared directly across from her at the a twenty something year old man who was sleeping peacefully through the whole ordeal. It was beyond her how he could sleep through this racket.

_Due to a security issue at Heathrow, all flights will be temporarily delayed until the issue is resolved. Please keep an eye on the flight status board to see the status of your flights. Thank-you for your continued patience._

This was no good. She was flying from London to Tokyo with a connection through Paris. If her flight from London was delayed much longer she would miss her connection in Paris. She pulled out her phone. Could she get on another flight? Perhaps a direct one to Tokyo? She tapped on her phone, but the page would not load up. She glanced over at the ticket agent. There was at least one hundred people waiting in line, and it appeared to be growing longer by the second.

"Damn it" she cursed loudly.

The sleeping man across from her opened his eyes and looked at her curiously. He stretched his arms and then sat up. He leaned forward towards her.

"Trouble?"

She tapped her phone in frustration. "You could say that. I'm going to miss my flight."

The man laughed. "Well, it looks like you and everyone else in this airport is going to miss their flight."

Temari crossed her arms in frustration. "I know. It's not that. It's just that I have a connection in Paris, and if I don't make that flight I won't get home in time. I have a really important meeting tomorrow that I absolutely cannot miss."

The man raised his eyebrow in interest. "If you don't mind me asking, where is your final destination?"

"Tokyo" she replied. She held her phone up above her head attempting to make it connect.

"You know, the servers are probably slammed with people trying to change their flights. You holding your phone up in the air isn't going to make it connect any faster."

She narrowed her eyes in annoyance. "What are you? Some tech expert or something?"

He smirked. "No….nothing like that. I'm just using my common sense."

"Well thank-you very much. That's ever so helpful." She shoved her phone back into her purse and looked wistfully at the ticket agent line which now appeared to have added another hundred people. She glanced back at the man she had just been speaking to. He'd be quite attractive if it wasn't for his ever present smirk and know it all attitude. His thick black hair was pulled back into a ponytail tied high on his head, and he was dressed very causally. Black slim fit joggers, t-shirt with a light green zip up hoodie. He looked like he was in the arts or some other creative field. Photographer? Artist? Musician? One thing was for sure, he wasn't from the corporate world that she lived in.

"So, you never told me where you're final destination was" she prompted.

"You never asked" he replied.

She immediately crossed her arms as a wave of irritation flashed across her face. "Well I'm asking now. "

He grinned back at her. "Tokyo."

Her face paled. "Through Paris? Same as me?"

"Through Paris. Same as you."

"Well, you're surprisingly calm sitting there considering we are totally going to miss our connection."

"What's the point of getting worked up about stuff that you can't change. If I miss my flight due to security issues, then that's that. I'll just get the next available flight. There's not really much more I can do."

"There is always something you can do if you think hard enough" she countered. "I could get a flight to Germany, and see what connections they have from Frankfurt. Or I could check some other hub. As long as I keep flying east, the shorter my flight to Tokyo will be."

"Or you could get on a non-passenger plane. There's DHL and all sorts of other courier planes around."

Temari's eyes lit up. "I didn't even think of that. This opens up a whole other list of possibilities!"

The man chuckled. "They're never going to let you on a plane like that. I was just joking."

"You joke, but you haven't countered my powers of persuasion. I bet I could convince them to make an exception."

_The security issue has been resolved. Please check the flight boards and check with you ticket agents to see the updated flight times. Thank you for your patience._

"Thank-God!" Temari yelped. She walked up to the board to see the updated times. Her flight to Paris was scheduled to take off right away. It was an hour and half later than she expected, but if they left soon, there was a slim chance she could still make her flight to Tokyo.

She returned to her seat. "We're in luck. We might make our connection in Paris. It'll be close, but it's still doable at this point."

He smiled. "See…no point in worrying right?"

"Well, lets not get ahead of ourselves. I'm not going to relax until I'm sitting on the plane to Tokyo." She started tapping her high heel nervously on the floor.

"You look like you have a permanent case of high blood pressure. Are you always this high strung?"

"Well you look like nothing gets your blood pressure up ever. Are you always this laid back?"

He stopped and stared at the woman in front of him. She was wearing a fitted white shirt with a deep v and a black pencil skirt. Her blonde hair was tied up in a high pony tail. Her slim legs ended with a delicate pair of royal blue stiletto heels.

"You're mostly right. I'm pretty laid back most of the time. But not always." He held out his hand to her. "Shikamaru."

She shook his hand. "Temari"

* * *

Temari nervously looked at the time on her in-flight display. If her connecting flight could be a little late it would make her life so much easier. It was so hard being up in the air not knowing what was happening below. She'd probably need to sprint to the gate right after she got off the plane so thankfully she was sitting near the front of the plane. It would probably be a good idea to go to the bathroom now, as the flight would be landing soon.

She got up and walked towards the washroom near the back of the plane. In the last row she saw a familiar shape of her former neighbour. Shikamaru had his head against the window and appeared to be sleeping peacefully. How could that man sleep again, after just sleeping for a couple of hours before the flight?

She carefully stepped towards the washroom, when the plane hit an air pocket and dropped. Losing her balance she fell into the empty seat beside Shikamaru with a thud.

She looked at him with her face reddened, as he was now staring at her with his ever maddening smirk.

"You know there are easier ways to come over and talk to me."

Temari pulled down her pencil skirt which rode up to mid thigh when she fell. "Excuse you. The gentlemanly thing would have been to ask if I was ok." She reached down and patted the dark floor in front of her.

He reached down and retrieved her blue stiletto that had fallen by his messenger bag. "Looking for this Cinderella?"

She snatched the heel from his hand. "Yes, thank-you" she replied tersely.

He whistled. "Those are truly stupid shoes to travel in don't you think?"

"Well nobody will ever mistake you for Prince Charming. Or ask you for fashion advice." Temari put her shoe back and got up. She glanced over at the lavatory. It was still occupied.

"Oh no one is questioning your fashion sense. I'm sure those that care about that kind of thing would call you quite stylish." His eyes were running appreciatively over her form fitting outfit. "I'm just questioning your common sense again."

"I came straight from my meeting to Heathrow. I didn't have time to change."

"You didn't have time to change during our one and a half hour extended wait for this flight?"

Temari's face flushed red. With so many late meetings in London, she had packed her carry on bag in a rush. She mostly put entertainment type items for the flight – books, magazines, her tablet and some make up. She had completely forgotten about packing a change of clothes and shoes. At the airport, she had been too preoccupied with missing her flight she didn't even think of getting comfortable.

Shikamaru smiled. "That's right, I guess you were busy coming up with your alternate plans for getting to Tokyo. "

"That's right I was. I don't leave things to chance. I like to have a plan." She stared back at the bathroom. Did the person fall asleep in there?

"I guess plans have their time and place." He tapped the empty seat next to him. "Why don't you just sit here for the rest of the flight? We are going to the same connecting flight after all."

Temari was surprised at the offer. This man was fun to talk with, but she needed to stay focused. "Well at risk of missing you insulting me the rest of the flight, I'm going to have to decline. Besides, I'm sitting near the front of the plane, so I'll get to the gate faster than you could. I'm not taking any chances."

"In those silly shoes?" he said with a smile.

"You better believe it."

* * *

"No!" Temari gasped as she reached Gate J20 holding her shoes. A white plane with the JAL logo was pulling away from the gate. "Can you call the plane back? It's barely out of the gate!"

The ticket agent clucked at her asinine request. "You know I can't do that." She scanned down the list of names. "Temari I'm guessing?"

"Yes that's me."

"You and three other people missed your connection. We were paging you for quite a while."

"My connecting flight from London just landed. I ran here as fast as I could."

"Yes that security incident at Heathrow messed everything up today. I'm glad today is over. Heathrow's incident caused us endless headaches here."

Temari saw Shikamaru strolling towards the gate at a leisurely pace.

"What can I do? I need to get to Tokyo for a meeting tomorrow afternoon. Can you book me on your next available flight?"

The ticket agent started clicking at her computer. "If you need to be in Tokyo during the day, you are out of luck. Our next flight is leaving in the morning. As you know the flight time is close to twelve hours, plus the time change so it'll be night time by the time you reach there."

Shikamaru leaned forward. "You do you mind checking if any other airlines are flying to Tokyo tonight. Please?"

The ticket agent gave Shikamaru a flirty smile. "Well, technically I'm not supposed to help you get flights on competitors airlines…but….You look like you've had quite the long day." She clicked on her computer.

Temari walked up to the window and looked at the empty gate. "I'm so dead. I can't miss my meeting. I can't…I can't."

"I'm sorry. It looks like we are the earliest flight out of Paris. The other airlines that are flying there are departing hours after ours. I can put you on standby for tomorrow mornings flight" the agent stated.

"Standby? Standby? You mean we are not even really guaranteed a seat?" Temari pleaded.

"It's a full flight. We're doing the best we can do."

"What about first class? Is there anything available there?"

"Like I said, it's a full flight. If we can get you on, we'll do the best that we can. Other than that, there are a few seats on the seven pm flight, but it will get you into Tokyo the following day."

"Thanks for your help, I mean, we appreciate it. We'll be here in the morning to try the standby flight, but for now could you book us on the evening flight so we at least have those seats?"

"Are you two together?"

"No" they both replied at the same time. Temari looked at Shikamaru surprised. He was being so helpful, it didn't seem like he was in any desperate need to get back to Tokyo himself.

"I need to make a call, I'm sorry, do you mind?" Temari said pulling out her phone. She pulled out her credit card and put it by the ticket agent. Shikamaru nodded in understanding.

The ticket agent began typing into her computer, booking them onto the evening flight the next day. The other travelers that missed their connection filed in behind Shikamaru. Temari was pacing back and forth talking on the phone looking more and more distressed.

_There was nothing I could do, it as a security issue!_

_But…But…_

_What do you want me to do, sprout wings and fly there? I'm doing everything humanly possible. This isn't fair! My other meeting ended at ten am. This was the next flight out. You need to –_

_You can't put everything on me. There is a team there, and I can't be the only one to -_

Shikamaru looked at her concerned. Her phone call appeared to be going badly from the one side he could hear. He turned his attention back to the ticket agent.

"Do you know where we can retrieve our luggage?"

"Well it's policy that if the person isn't on the plane then the luggage can't go either." She pulled out a map. "The luggage will be stored in this area. The problem is, that it's closed right now to the public. They'll have a customer service agent at 6 am. There are a number of hotels near the airport. I'd suggest you try to get a room there, they'll be able to provide a travelers kit. Toothbrush and paste and what not. Here are your tickets for the 7 pm flight tomorrow. Please make sure you let us know if you make it onto the morning flight, so we can open those seats up again."

He looked over at Temari who was now slumped in a chair her head between her hands.

"Thanks for all your help" Shikamaru replied, grabbing his and Temari's tickets. He walked over to her and sat beside her.

"Are you going to tell me I told you so?" Temari whispered defeated.

"I know I may put my foot in my mouth sometimes, but I'm not that much of a jerk. I know you needed to get home." He patted her on the shoulder. "Why don't we get out of here. Find a nearby hotel, settle in? I mean, it's not all bad, you get to hear my witty remarks a little longer right?"

A sad smile broke out on Temari's face.

"Let's get out of here."

* * *

"Well….Ummm." Shikamaru started.

"It's not exactly the Ritz Carleton is it?"

Shikamaru had walked Temari to her room at the only hotel in the area that had a few rooms. The problem at Heathrow and caused endless missed flights, and hotel rooms were very hard to come by. They were lucky to get a few rooms, but it was definitely nothing to write home about. The walls were patched up badly, the carpet ripped and stained. The toilet paper was held in place in the bathroom with a dull pencil instead of a spindle.

Temari tossed her purse on the bed. "I guess it's the perfect end to the perfect day isn't it?" She pulled out her phone. "I hope this place at least has wifi." She pulled her laptop out of her messenger bag and set it on the bed.

Shikamaru frowned at the sight of the computer. He sat down on the bed beside her. "So we are in Paris. Have you ever been?"

"To Paris?"

"Yes."

"Actually, I haven't. Have you?"

"A few times. I'm no expert or anything, but there are definitely some beautiful places to see. Why don't we get out of this depressing hotel room and go see the city."

"With you?"

Shikamaru shrugged. "I mean…unless you have a better offer out there."

"I don't know…I mean I should really work. I need to prepare my coworker, run over the presentation-"

"Is that what you really want to do?"

"Well no. But I think I have to because if this presentation doesn't-"

"You're only in Paris for one evening, and you had a rough day. You should really do what you want to do. Don't you think?"

Temari thought back on her previous phone call with her boss. He showed no concern about missing her flight, or the security incident which had made the news. Everything was always on her shoulders, praise was rarely given. He had even threatened that if the meeting didn't go well without her that her job was on the line. She could spend the evening trying to coach her colleague along, preparing them to the upmost degree. It wasn't fair, they should be prepared without her help. What did she owe them? They'd only take all credit if it went well, and blame her if it didn't.

She looked at the handsome man that was standing across from her. He had been so kind during this whole ordeal even though she was a stranger to him. An evening exploring Paris. It did sound nice. Maybe he was right in that she should do what she wants for once.

"Let's go see Paris."

* * *

They started walking down the road near their hotel towards a busier area where they could catch taxis.

"So what kind of stuff are you interested in seeing? Museums, famous historical sites, Food – there's a chocolate district, cheese, breads, or shopping if you are interested in that kind of thing."

Temari's eye's lit up. Shikamaru looked over in worry, he really didn't want to spend his evening in Paris shopping.

"Did you say a there's a chocolate district? Seriously?"

Shikamaru smiled in relief – shopping avoided. "It's a bit of a ways….how about I call an taxi"

"Lead the way"

* * *

"Oh my God….I think I've died and gone to heaven." Temari said as she popped her second truffle in her mouth. "It's so rich, and creamy. I don't think I've ever tasted anything like this before."

The pair sat down at the table outside the chocolatier with their hot coffee's and small box of chocolates. The streets were busy in the St. Germain district of Paris.

"It's so beautiful here." She smiled as she gazed out onto the street. The sun was starting to set and the streets were filled with music and artists.

Shikamaru felt somewhat perplexed. What was he doing there? Why was he hanging out with this high strung, neurotic, albeit very attractive woman right now? Normally he'd just have minded his own business at the airport and been on his way. He'd go see a few sights, have a glass of wine, and then retire to his hotel. There was something about her though that was drawing him in.

By first appearances she seemed to be everything he would not be into to. Physically, there was no denying her appeal, it wasn't that. She would be nothing but trouble, and that was something he had no desire for. A calm, laid back, sensible women – that was his bag. Temari was freaking out the first moment he saw her, was completely high strung, seem work obsessed, and her outfit just screamed high maintenance. He wasn't sure how they were going to go sightseeing with her 3 inch high heel stilettos. She hadn't complained about her feet so far, but it was probably only a matter of time.

There was something different about her though. She was confident, she didn't back down. She had a focus that was very admirable. She wasn't afraid to spar with him, which was fun and refreshing.

"So you never told me what you do for work?" Temari asked.

"Once again, you never asked."

"Are you always such a smart ass? I'm asking. This is my way of asking!"

Shikamaru just smiled. "You first. You never told me what you do for work."

"Answering a question with a question I see. Well, I will answer, because that's how normal people have a conversation. I'm a product manager for Tajikawa Corp. I came to London to pitch our new product to a big client here. Now that wasn't hard was it? Your turn. What do you do for work?"

"Why don't you guess?" he teased.

Temari raised her eyebrow. "Guess? You want me to guess? Hmmm…..well you're an interesting take. Let's see – what information do I have? Well, this ponytail thing you've got going on doesn't really scream corporate to me, so I'm thinking you're more in a creative field. Your clothes tell me you're more about comfort over fashion. You didn't seem overly worried about missing the flight, or having to pay for a hotel – so I'm guessing you're financially secure and maybe work for yourself. With all these facts in mind, I would have to go with…"

"Yes…"

"Circus Trainer. It's the only logical choice."

"Your powers of deduction are amazing. I have to tell you."

"Yes, I've been told that." The pair started laughing.

"Seriously though, maybe something in the arts? Photographer? Musician perhaps?"

Shikamaru smiled. She was so off base, but it was fun hearing her analyze his traits. "Economist. Not quite as exciting as your guesses. It sounds a bit dry compared to your suggestions."

"An economist!" Temari's face could not reveal her shock. "I mean, wow, I wasn't expecting that. I know that is a very challenging field. We have a few at my company."

"Well I like numbers, and trends, and I like to analyze the big picture and see what I can come up with. It's fun for me, and it pays the bills I guess."

"Wow, well, I have to say, you surprised me. I wasn't expecting that."

He smiled. "I'm full of surprises. Now, If you excuse me, I need to go to the washroom." He stood up, and headed back into the café.

Temari watched him as he walked away. Shikamaru….economist. It was triggering something familiar, like she had heard his name before. She had not met him at work, that was for sure, but where did she know him from?

She took out her phone and googled "Shikamaru, economist, Tokyo". The page flooded with hits. From the accompanying photos, they were all him.

_Child Shogi Prodigy grows up – How Shikamaru Nara is now taking the Economics world by storm._

_Local Genius goes Global – Shikamaru Nara invited to speak at International Economics Conference in England._

Temari set down her phone. Child Prodigy? Shogi Champion? International Speaker on Economics? Just who was this man that she was sharing chocolates and coffee with right now? This man with a pineapple ponytail and track pants was a genius? A child prodigy? He certainly didn't come off that way. He came off as a sarcastic smart ass. A very good looking smart ass, but a smart ass none the less. She saw him in the café, starting to make his way back outside. She quickly opened up an app on her phone. It was time to have a little fun.

Shikamaru pulled out his chair and sat down. He glanced at her phone. "Not work I hope."

Temari smiled coyly. "Nope, just a game." She turned her phone towards him. "Shogi….ever played?"

"Yeah..a little I guess. You?"

"I just started. It's complicated but fun, I think you need to be a _genius_ to really excel at it though."

He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "You googled me didn't you?"

"Whatever are you talking about? I just love these types of games. I'm pretty good you know. I bet I could whoop your ass. And why would I google you? I don't even know your last name."

Shikamaru raised his eyebrow. "Nor do I Temari Kagaya. Executive at Tajikawa Corporation. Youngest hire in their executive team. Graduated with Great Disctiction with a degree in Communications and Marketing from the University of Tokyo. Eldest of three children, with two younger brothers – Kankuro and Gaara."

"Whaaaa. So you googled me too stalker."

"I like to know what kind of crazy I'm spending my evening with."

"So why would you care if I googled you?"

"Oh I don't know. I like people to make their own impressions of me by talking to me instead of coming in with some preconceived notions about how I am."

Temari looked at him thoughtfully. "Isn't that what we all want?" It made sense with his background. Given his fame at a young age, people probably immediately treated him differently from the get go. They never got the chance to meet the real him. "Don't worry, I still think you're an arrogant smart ass."

"And I think you're a neurotic stress case. A neurotic stress case with a beautiful smile." He looked at the rapidly setting sun. "Listen, I don't think we're going to have time to see everything if we are going to try to get a little bit of sleep tonight before our flight tomorrow, so what is the one thing you've always wanted to go see in Paris?"

"I mean, I feel like we should go see the Eiffel Tower, I mean it's so famous and beautiful. But I've always wanted to…Oh I don't know…it's stupid, and you probably don't want to go see this. It's dumb."

"I think you should do what you want to do. Who cares about what people think you should do or see. What is it?"

A faraway look took over Temari's face. "I've always wanted to see the Moulin Rouge because I love the movie so much. I know you must think its pretty cheesy. We don't have to go. We can do something you want to do."

She looked so sweet with a hopeful look on her face. There was no way he'd deny her request. And to be honest, she didn't really need to twist his arm to go to a burlesque show. He was a red blooded male after all.

He stood up and held his hand out to her. "The Moulin Rouge it is. Let's go."

* * *

Temari walked out holding Shikamaru's arm tightly as the exited the famous red building adorned with a brightly lit windmill. The crowd that had been inside were dispersing and gathering on the hill. Vendors filled the streets trying to sell tourists trinkets, roses and souvenirs.

"So?" he prodded.

"Amazing, it was simply amazing. It was everything I thought it would be." She sighed in happiness. "The singing, the dancing, the set, the food, the wine.." she paused and smiled up at Shikamaru. "The company."

Shikamaru flushed as he looked down at Temari. The change from when she was at the airport to now was astounding. She looked positively giddy with happiness. The copious amounts of wine they had both drank was probably helping a bit too. She was a lot more complex than her first impressions gave off. She challenged him, and she was so damn beautiful he was having trouble keeping his eyes off of her. He hated to admit this tiny spitfire was captivating him.

"I have to admit, I am great company" he whispered back to her.

She punched him in the arm. "Idiot" She fell slightly off balance but he quickly caught her, holding her tightly in his strong arms. Her face went red with embarrassment.

"These shoes aren't the best on cobblestone."

"I'm kind of surprised you haven't complained about your shoes all night. I was sort of expecting that from you."

"Hmmph…well I'm not a complainer. I'm a problem solver. These shoes were fit for purpose for work, but now…." She eyed a shop nearby. "Come with me"

They walked into a little tourist shop near the Moulin Rouge that seemed to sell a mish mash of everything imaginable. Temari bee lined toward some flats that were stacked against the wall. She flipped through, and found a pair of ugly red flats. She slipped off her blue stilettos and exchanged them for the somewhat orthopedic pair.

"Oh God that feels good." She held up her foot and laughed.

"You must find me simply irresistible now in my old lady shoes"

"Yes."

Temari stopped and looked at the man. He was not smiling but looking at her with a serious expression.

"Yes?" Her heart started beating at this turn in the conversation.

He picked up a sequined red sequined eye mask with feathers from the shelf and tied it around her eyes. "You look like Satine."

Temari stepped towards Shikamaru so that she was right in front of his chest. "Are you saying I look like a courtesan?" she teased.

A tuft of hair fell over the mask. He gently took the strand of hair and tucked it behind her ear. His hands lingered as his finger lightly ran across her cheek. "A courtesan that captivated the musician, or economist in this case."

He gently leaned up and cupped her face in his hands. He started to lean in towards her lips. She leaned in towards him.

A portly woman with her grey hair tied in a high bun came bustling in. "Oh there you two are! Have you found everything you need? Oh I see you found a lovely pair of shoes. And a mask! You are travelling from out of town? You must buy some souvenirs! I have stuff no other shop sells. Best prices here too. What would you like? T-shirts? Mugs? Keychains? Some chocolates to take home?"

Temari flushed red. Had he really almost kissed her? She was very attracted to him but this was so unexpected. She had just met Shikamaru a few hours ago. "I think I'll just be taking the shoes" she told the shopkeeper quietly taking off the mask. She put the shoes on the counter.

"Are you sure sweetheart? I mean, it's not every day one goes to the Moulin Rouge."

She looked at Shikamaru. It appeared that his whole demeanor had changed. He was no longer looking at her, but staring back out the window of the shop. It was like nothing had happened between them. Perhaps they had just gotten caught up in the moment, hopped up on wine, just having seen a romantic burlesque show.

She purchased the shoes and put them on her aching feet. She then put her blue stilettos in a bag the store provided for her.

"Temari, it's past midnight. If we want to get to the airport for 6 am and get a few hours of sleep, we better head back to the hotel"

She tucked her bag under her arm and nodded. It appeared that their moment had passed.

* * *

Temari kicked off her shoes and looked at the sterile hotel room. Tonight had been amazing. Never had she felt so free and like a complete unadulterated version of herself. Now she was back to get a few hours sleep, and she would have to get back to her life. Her stressful, planned to the minute life.

…that was if she still had a job.

…that is if she still even wanted to work there.

Why was she choosing to be stressed out and unhappy? She was good at her job, and they weren't the only game in town. She wouldn't have a problem finding another one, or even perhaps working for herself.

She walked to the bathroom and took the hotel provided toothbrush and toothpaste. She started brushing her teeth, and looked at her image in the mirror. There was a difference. Her hair looked a bit crazy but generally the same, her clothes a little worse for wear. Really her appearance was the same as she normally looked but with one main difference – she looked happy. For once in her life she didn't look stressed or worried, she simply looked happy.

She knew what she wanted to do, and she wasn't going to over think it for once in her life. She had a feeling from the looks he had given her tonight, that they were on the same page.

* * *

Shikamaru finished washing up and was about to crawl into bed. He was about to take off his pants, when he heard a knock at the door.

He walked over and opened the door. Temari was standing there barefoot with coy smile.

"Temari? What are you doing here?"

"Can I come in?"

He held the door open and the small statured woman walked in. "I'm surprised to see you here. I thought you would have been out like a light already."

"You're the one that has a propensity to fall asleep at the drop of a hat, so I'm the one surprised that you were still awake." She ran her fingers slowly along the dresser that was near his bed. "I was hoping that you were though."

"Hoping for what exactly"

"I was hoping that you were not planning on sleeping yet. I've thought a lot about what you said to me."

Shikamaru looked at her curiously. He sat down on the bed and looked at the blonde woman who had crashed into his life a mere day before.

"What did I say exactly?"

"That I should do what I want, and not worry about what others think."

He paused. It was a recurring topic between them, but it was interesting that this statement had brought her here. To his bedroom. "That sounds like good advice, so it must have come from me. But what exactly do you want to do?"

Temari just smiled and continued running her hands along the smooth wood of the table. "I think you know" she whispered.

He hoped he knew where this was going, but with this troublesome woman, one could never really be sure. He was going to follow his own advice and not overthink this. He had almost kissed her in the shop before he gotten interrupted by the shopkeeper. After that his mind started racing and questioning what he was doing with a stranger he barely knew. It was so unlike him. The shopkeeper coming in felt like fate stepping in. But now, here she was, alone in his bedroom. Perhaps this was fate instead.

"And what pray tell would we do instead of sleeping?" he whispered.

She lightly ran her hand down the buttons of her blouse. "Oh I don't know….I'm sure we could come up with something fun. Besides….I forgot my pajamas. I can't sleep without my pajamas. Unless you lend me yours." She took her hand and gently stroked the collar of his black t-shirt.

Shikamaru smiled and put his hand on her hip, testing the waters, lightly running his fingers along the black material. "It appears I forgot mine too. It appears we both have a problem."

"I might need a genius to help figure this one out."

"I don't know…I'm positively stumped."

"You could always lend me your t-shirt. " She undid the top button of her blouse. "As you can see, this shirt is not really conducive to sleeping."

"Aaah…but you said that you were not planning on sleeping right?" Shikamaru countered. His eyes were glued on her, he could not look away.

"You're right, but I hate feeling so uncomfortable." Temari undid another button.

"By all means, I would never want a lady to feel uncomfortable in my room. I will lend you my t-shirt." Shikamaru reached down peeled off his black t-shirt and held it in his hands.

This was a pleasant surprise. Temari gazed at his toned beautiful body that was now leaning back across the bed. She could tell that his was fit, but now she got to see how beautifully defined he was. Perhaps this man was more motivated than she had first suspected. She left her blouse alone momentarily and decided to give him a little tease of what was to come. She reached to the back of her high waisted skirt and pulled down the zipper. The skirt dropped to reveal her thigh high stockings.

"Oh God…" Shikamaru whispered mesmerized. He pulled her hips towards him so that she was closer to him, practically straddling his legs.

"Not so fast" Temari countered. She returned to her blouse and slowly undid the remaining buttons. She took off the white shirt to reveal a revealing a black lace teddy cut low in the front, and strapped to her thigh high stockings.

"That's what you were wearing underneath that corporate outfit of yours…God Damn Temari. Well one thing is for sure. I changed my mind. You can't have my t-shirt. I prefer you like this."

"Oh do you?" Temari pushed Shikamaru back so that he was lying down. She got up on him and straddled his waist. "I thought you were a gentleman? You wouldn't want me to get cold."

He put both his hands around her waist and gazed up at the vision in front of him. "This outfit isn't really bringing out the gentleman in me. I can think of better ways of keeping you warm."

"Not a gentleman hmmm? What do you feel like then….something a little more primal?" She grinded her hips down towards his, feeling him hardening rapidly against her.

"You're asking for trouble woman." His grip on her waist tightened his hands starting to slide upwards.

"Oh really? Well maybe we should do something about that. Your pants can't feel comfortable, and you should feel comfortable in your own room."

She ran her small hand over his pants against his hardened shaft, stroking it slowly but firmly. Her fingers lingered on the top button of his pants. "Let me help you get more comfortable."

"What do you think you're doing down there you little minx?"

She raised her eyebrow. "It shouldn't take a genius to figure it out."

"Well that's where you're wrong. You see, this is my room, and you've sauntered in here dressed like sin itself. You think you get to decide everything?"

"Pretty much." She coyly bit a piece of her hair. "Should I go back to my room?"

He flipped her over and pinned her on her back. "I'm going to prove to you how much a gentleman I am not. I'm going to watch you fall apart inch by inch and completely lose it, and I'm going to enjoy every second of it."

Temari raised her eyes at his intensity. He had mentioned that he was not always laid back when they had first started talking. She was beginning to see this new side of him. She slowly ran her finger up his arm. "That's a pretty big promise to make. Perhaps even a bit arrogant?"

"It's not arrogant if I can back it up."

She shivered in anticipation. Shikamaru leaned on top of her and brought his lips inches from hers. "First things first. I want to kiss those beautiful lips of yours."

She was expecting a hot passionate kiss. What she was not expecting was what only could be described as the most soul shivering kiss any man had ever given her. It started off so slow but there was a delicate tenderness about it that was drawing her in so deeply. As their tongues explored each other, the intensity started ramping up ever so slowly. It felt like the beginning of an addiction, her toes were even tingling. She pulled him even closer and wrapped her legs around his waist. She did not want this kiss to ever end. His tongue explored her, longer and deeper, she felt like she was drowning.

His lips left hers, and started to slowly trail down her neck, lightly nipping her on the way down leaving light red blotches. He reached the between her breasts when he sat up to gaze upon his work.

His hand lightly stroked the edge of the lace on her teddy.

"You're perfect. You're going to be end of me, do you know that?" Both his hands were now on her chest lightly cupping both breasts over the lace. "Only you would have such fussy complicated underwear."

Temari smiled. She was ready to rip it off herself she was so turned on. She didn't think she could wait too much longer. She reached around the back to undo the small clasps, but his hands had already found their way there. He made quick work of the clasps and her back was now free of the lace, but the straps were still attached to her stockings.

Temari made quick work of the straps connecting her stockings. She placed her hand on her thigh to pull them off, but Shikamaru's hand quickly stopped her.

"Keep them on" he whispered. "They look hot."

She flushed red. He was kinkier than she had expected. He shimmied her out of her teddy so that she was now lying completely naked on the bed minus her stockings. She put her legs together and moved them to the side to reserve her last shred of modesty.

Shikamaru put a light kiss on her lips. "No need for that, I'm going to kiss every single inch of you."

He returned to where he left off but this time moved on to her breasts unhindered. He took her pink bud into his mouth and gave it an agonizing suck.

"Oh God…" she shuddered. He continued holding each breast tenderly. He kissed and then blew cool air after as if to cool it from his touch.

With that he pulled her mouth to his and started kissing her again. He was hungry for her and she was hungry for him. Their tongues collided and started the dance that they had begun together. His hands were exploring, touching her everywhere. Gliding up and down her legs, caressing her shoulder blades, running up her stomach, lightly massaging her breasts.

Shikamaru moved down from her mouth slowly kissing down her neck and making his way to her breasts. He lightly suckled her breast and Temari let out a soft moan.

"You are so beautiful." He lay back on top of her and they started kissing again. His hand travelled back to the apex of her legs, and this time started he started lightly stroking her.

Temari jumped at the feeling. A shiver ran through her entire body leaving her toes tingling. Shikamaru did not take long to find her sweet spot. He gently stroked a small circle in her most sensitive spot and Temari let out a loud whimper.

"Do you like that?" Shikamaru whispered huskily in her ear. "Do you want some more of that?.

"Oooh…my….don't stop…don't stop" Temari moaned.

Shikamaru continued stroking Temari, shifting his position so he could reach her better. She lay back and closed her eyes getting lost in the build up that he was giving her. What she was unprepared for was the hot wetness of his mouth as it suddenly met her core. She opened her eyes to see Shikamaru's intense eyes staring back at her. She had never seen a look like that from a man before. He looked so focused…so hungry. He continued lapping her sweet juices, and she started to move to the sweet rhythm his tongue was dictating.

"Shika…." Temari started but lost complete control of her voice. She had never felt anything like this before. She felt like she was in the ocean, with waves of pleasure were hitting her over and over again. Shikamaru was now exploring her with his finger and his tongue. Her hands gripped his long ponytail in desperation of something to stabilize her from this intensity.

Shikamaru continued exploring her with his curious tongue. She pulled his hair tighter and started to tremble uncontrollably. Shikamaru continued on his mission to have her fall apart completely.

"Oh Shikamaru…Shikamaru…SHIKAMARU!" she cried out. Her leg was shaking and she had locked Shikamaru's head between her knees momentarily. Her whole body started shaking as her orgasm washed over her. She finally released his head and lay on the bed chest heaving. Shikamaru leaned up beside her and pulled her into a tight embrace. A self-satisfied smirk lay upon his face.

"So am I all talk? I recall someone calling me arrogant a little earlier."

Temari leaned in his chest her face still flushed. "Not arrogant. Certified genius in all things it appears."

"This time I can say I told you so."

Temari raised her eyebrow. "You're not the only one with skills, as you are about to see."

"Oh really?" he taunted.

Temari took his hand and extended his forefinger out. She put his finger in her mouth and swirled her tongue around the base all the way to the tip. His eyes were completely stuck on her.

"God…I'm in trouble aren't I"

"You have no idea. I'm going to make you forget your own name."

Growing bolder, Temari straddled his waist and started kissing down his taut chest and continued running her hands down his firm stomach. She reached the top of his pants, this time determined to finish what she had started earlier. She reached her hand lower to firmly stroke his rapidly hardening member. Shikamaru stared at her with a look of desperation. She pulled off his pants and tossed them to the floor.

She scooted down the bed kneeled between his knees. Temari ran her hand over his arousal, at first lightly and then with more pressure. Temari smiled to herself. It appeared that the height to proportion correlation was true in Shikamaru's case. Temari leaned in close and hooked her thumbs on the waistband of his underwear and started to pull them down.

"Temari!" Shikamaru warned.

Temari yanked his underwear down and then was hit in the face by the unassuming member. "Oh my God!" she yelped.

Shikamaru covered his mouth in shock. "Temari! I'm so sorry. Ummm….let's just say it's happy to see you?" he said with a guilty smile.

Temari giggled. "I didn't think it would spring out like that. Wow…Shikamaru you are quite…"

"Aesthetically pleasing?" Shikamaru finished.

Temari licked her lips. "Very much so…" she answered while staring at him.

She gave him one long final stroke and then edged in closer to him. Shikamaru was lying there with his eyes closed and a soft smile on his face.

Temari lowered her mouth to the head of his cock. She slowly stroked her tongue around the head, to which Shikamaru's whole body shivered. She leaned in forward and put her entire mouth around the tip and gave it a light suck lingering her tongue along the slit.

"Oh God!" Shikamaru shuddered, his hands clenching the sheets of the bed.

Temari glanced up and smiled. Oh he liked that…he definitely liked that. Time to go back for more. She started lightly stroking him up and down while she sucked the head letting her tongue explore…running it over the tip, and down past under the ridge. She ran her tongue down his length and then down onto his base.

Shikamaru's hands were clenched onto the bed so tight that his hands were starting to turn white. His eyes remained closed and he as he uttered out small whimpers of pleasure. Temari returned to the head of his member and started sucking, bobbing up and down. She used her hands to stoke him in unison, increasing the speed and pressure as she went along.

Shikamaru let go of the bed and held her hair, as she enveloped him. He was getting close. His cries were getting more passionate and frantic as she went along. She could feel him holding her hair tighter and tighter. She kept going, her pace getting faster and more fervent. Shikamaru started to desperately call out her name over and over. He was close to his point of no return.

"Stop Stop…I don't want to yet….Stop for a second. Can we…" he gasped desperately.

"It's ok. I want this. All of this."

"I do too, but our first time…I want to be in you. Can we do that. I can't keep going like this much longer."

Temari gave him a shy smile, pleased that she managed to get him into this frantic state. To be honest, she was desperate to feel him inside her too. "I'm ready too. I want you so bad. Just one thing though"

"Don't go softly. I want you to take me hard."

Shikamaru stopped surprised at her request. He was not one to deny a ladies request. Shikamaru put on a condom, and then lined up his member to her entrance and thrust into her with one hard stroke. He rapidly started increasing the frequency, and soon he was back on the road to climax as he had been before. She felt amazing. So warm and wet and perfect. She felt like home.

Temari was overwhelmed feeling Shikamaru inside of her. It was a pleasure she could not describe, she felt so connected to him. She had never felt more beautiful. She could feel herself starting toward the path of her own orgasm again. It felt sublime. His back felt slightly sweaty as she ran her hands up and down them. She liked feeling the power of his thrusts. She wanted more.

"Faster…harder…" she moaned as she was getting increasing more frantic, raking her hands down his back.

Shikamaru quickly obliged and they were soon at the point of no return. Temari was feeling wave after wave of pleasure, she couldn't even think anymore. Her legs started shaking uncontrollably. Shikamaru was thrusting with such intensity. His body then stiffened up as he released and then he collapsed on her in an exhausted heap.

They both laid there breathing heavily, clinging to each other, saying nothing. They didn't need to talk. For once, they didn't need to talk. Shikamaru eventually rolled off her and onto his back. He looked at the beautiful woman whose skin was flushed red from their lovemaking. He was right – she was going to be the death of him.

He looked at the clock, it was now 3:30 am. "You know, if we want to get to the airport for the morning flight we should probably shower and start heading back. I know you don't want to miss that plane."

She gave him a wicked grin and snuggled into his chest.. "Screw the standby flight, we can spend the rest of the day in Paris."

"Oh yeah? Well what do you want to do?"

She ran her fingers up his chest. "You."

* * *

"I see you two didn't make the morning flight." The gate agent from the previous day was there to greet them.

"No….it wasn't going to happen." Shikamaru answered. He put his arm around Temari who giggled into his shoulder.

The agent looked at the couple. Both looked completely disheveled, their necks covered in telltale dark marks. They had told her yesterday they were a not a couple. She chuckled to herself. Paris did funny things to people.

"Seats Together?"

They smiled. "Yes, together."

She gathered their boarding passes and handed it to them. "Thank-you, please enjoy your flight. And once piece of advice for you two for your flight – "

"Yes" Temari replied.

"The lavatory is meant for one person" she said with a grin.

**A/N: Thanks for reading! Any reviews would be very appreciated!**


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